We're finally here, the beginning of our 2012 Tour of the Midwest that will stretch from Lower Michigan through Illinois, Wisconsin, Upper Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota, across the Dakotas, to Montana, down through Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, and then across Kansas for our final races. It will be a full four months on the road and will cover a lot of territory.
Yes, we missed quite a few racetracks and a few states, but there was no way to squeeze it all in within this short-track-rich chunk of America. So, we picked and chose those tracks that would represent a cross section of short track racing in the U.S.
Our first two tracks here in Michigan were asphalt tracks at Berlin Raceway and Kalamazoo Speedway. From our camp at the KOA in Coloma, Michigan, just east of the shoreline of Lake Michigan, it was only a short drive to both. It all went very well. Here is a summary of what we saw.
Berlin Raceway was the scene...
Berlin Raceway was the scene of the Rowdy 251 race, a feature event each year that brings big time racers and hot-shot short trackers together for some interesting results.
Berlin Raceway
Since our race schedule began as soon as practical after our bus participated in the Hot Rod Power Tour, we just happened to be at Berlin Raceway for the fourth annual Rowdy 251, one of the bigger events held each year there. It featured an appearance by Kyle Busch of NASCAR Sprint Cup fame and about 39 other very good teams. Teams came from as far away as Daytona Beach to race this event. Ben Kennedy, a young and upcoming driver from Daytona tested his skills as well as Chase Elliot, who would make a late race charge and finish Second. The race was sanctioned by the CRA Super Series, a division of the Champion Racing Association, and that crew did a great job tech'ing and running the show. All events were on a strict time schedule and the racing was mostly clean. Berlin is a 7/16-mile high-banked track that began operation as a dirt track back in 1950. This year, a partnership named DBD Ventures, led by Don Dewitt will manage the track. Mike Burlsey and Kurt Dietrich will co-promote the raceway each week and Kurt was my contact for our visit.
The track is located inside the Berlin Fairgrounds, not unlike many tracks we have been to in the Northeast and will be visiting this year. As such, there is plenty of parking and the grounds are kept up nicely. Families are used to coming to the Fair each year and this helps attract them to the races, in my opinion. As for the races, about 40 Late Models showed up to race in the long event. It was divided into two segments where after 125 laps, the teams could pit and change all four tires. Once the second 126-lap segment got under way, the teams were allowed to again pit under green or yellow, for two more new tires. All of the lead lap teams opted to do this during a late race caution. The other event that evening featured the Top Speed Fabrication Modifieds and they put on quite a show. There was fighting and clawing for position throughout the field. The leader for most of the race was Adam Chase and he had to endure several restarts after cautions to hold on for the win. He drove a very smart race being careful not to make any mistakes.
CRA, Champion Racing Association,...
CRA, Champion Racing Association, was the sanction for the 251 event and proved to be a very professional group that managed the racing very well. The Super Series that this race was a part of covers a lot of territory and opens and closes at Watermelon Capitol Speedway in Cordele, Georgia.
Johnny VanDoorn runs the Port...
Johnny VanDoorn runs the Port City Chassis house car and does very well. He battled with Kyle Busch all night and ended up Third after Busch and Chase Elliot. He won the next CRA event after this one at Winchester Speedway.
Whether it was the Modifieds or the Late Models, the key to success here is tire management, not that you don't need that at any track. It's just that here, the track is slick, the cars really don't go straight much, and according to locals, you almost never are able to go to full throttle. Kyle Busch won the Rowdy 251, the third time in a row for this special event, and used superior tire management to do so. In qualifying for the feature, I couldn't hear him lift the throttle going into Turn 1. He set and held fast time for a while until Johnny VanDoorn came out and bested him by several thousandths. Still, I could hear Johnny lift going into the turns. In the race, the officials pulled an invert of 16 cars putting Johnny in 16th and Busch in 15th starting positions. Kyle ran fairly hard staying in the Top 5 and VanDoorn led most of the first half. Coming out at the start of the second half, the No. 12 car of Tim DeVos took off and led the next 70 laps till Kyle, followed by Johnny VanDoorn, passed him. All during that second half, I watched as Kyle could have made a pass attempt on DeVos, but didn't. Lap after lap, DeVos ran the second groove with Kyle and Johnny on the bottom. I could sense that Kyle could have run side-by-side and come out ahead after a few laps, but that would have hurt his tires and maybe ruined the finish for him.
So, he patiently waited till Tim's tires went away and pounced. There is a lesson here for every driver. Patience and throttle modulation are the keys to winning most times. As we've seen over the course of this Tour, the top drivers seem to be the ones with the patience and experience that puts them in the lead at the end of the race. DeVos faded to 10th while Chase Elliot, who also managed his tires well, charged past VanDoorn for Second late in the race. During the race we witnessed a repeat of the type of wreck that we featured a few years ago where a Late Model ran into the end of the Turn 3 wall. The back straight at Berlin is open to the outside with no wall or other restraining structure. So, a car can run off the track and into the end of the wall surrounding Turns 3 and 4.
At the end of the wall are a series of huge construction tires that do a great job of absorbing the energy of a race car going 100-plus mph. In the race, Kenzie Ruston had worked her way up to sixth by lap 203 in the event and got pushed off the back straight and into the tires at near full speed. She quickly emerged unhurt and gave an interview minutes later. I'm sure the safety equipment she wore attributed to the lack of injury and she was able to return to racing the next week. I credit CRA for that. Here is a quote from its rule book: "A capable form of head & neck restraint must be used. A strap-type neck restraint is mandatory for CRA Super Series for all tracks." The race crowd for this Tuesday night race was huge. The entire length of the grandstands was full to 90 percent capacity. Several local businesses participated in the events giving away T-shirts and gifts to the kids and proving that it takes a community participation to help make a racetrack successful. We felt very welcomed here and the fan base was loyal.
This track is very difficult...
This track is very difficult to get bite off the corners and some say you can almost never go to full throttle the entire race. Work on the left rear corner to try to improve traction was common up and down the pits.
A Modified has little or no...
A Modified has little or no aero downforce, but with this new type of nose, some loading can be had by channeling the air over the nose. Note the lip on the lower portion of the front of the nose. I believe this team does see an advantage from a lower pressure under the nose and therefore more aero downforce, somewhat like a Late Model.
The crowd of spectators was...
The crowd of spectators was strong at Berlin and a lot of the reason why is because this is a big event each year, despite being run on a Tuesday night. That’s the way it is in this region, a racer can run five or six nights a week at times. In a couple of weeks from now, we will be visiting four racetracks in a row from Thursday night to Sunday night.
Kalamazoo Speedway
The Zoo, as it's sometimes called, was a regular Saturday night race event, but we came away from the night with a feeling that every night here is a big event. The track officials and all of the workers, as well as the racers welcomed us in a huge way.
Gary, the owner, and Donna Howe, who runs the operations, were on top of everything that went on here. Gary even loaned me a golf cart to use throughout the event and since the pits were both inside and outside the track, it got used quite a bit. This is one of the best managed, maintained, and operated tracks we've been to on the entire Tour covering half of the U.S., so far. The track is oval/egg-shaped with no noticeable straights, but is highly banked offering good side-by-side racing. Top drivers here for this event included NASCAR star Johnny Benson shaking down a new car, and the Bozell family including Andy, Phil, and Jeff. Fast time for the Outlaw feature was posted by Brian Bergakker, a multi-fast time setter at this track. The divisions run here include the Cyber Stocks, Mini Stocks, Pro Stocks, Super Stocks, and Outlaw Super Late Models. Interestingly, the Outlaw Supers must run the Hoosier 970 treaded tires with only two new tires allowed to be run each week maximum.
Kalamazoo was a pleasant surprise....
Kalamazoo was a pleasant surprise. Although a regular weekly show, the attendance was strong for both racers and fans. Gary and Donna Howe were our hosts and we couldn’t have been treated better. Gary loaned me his golf cart and I used it to visit with many of the racers throughout the pits.
The Zoo installed eight cameras...
The Zoo installed eight cameras that monitor the action on the track. Should a conflict occur, there are usually several cameras that would have captured the progression to the point of knowing exactly who was the aggressor and who was the victim. There happened to be one occurrence that night and I viewed the video. It was clear how it had happened and the driver came away with, in my opinion, a better understanding of how to avoid problems the next time.
The tech officials at Kalamazoo...
The tech officials at Kalamazoo are the best and keep a close eye on all of the racers. Here Darren Lane passes through inspection aided by his father, Doug Lane. Darren is a young driver who has a very fast race car and showed a lot of promise coming from eighth in his heat to win in just eight laps.
Many drivers complained about having to run these tires, but when I spoke with several, they all agreed that this particular tire was very repeatable in performance and one even said it was better the second week it was run. It's a $100 tire and makes this class of racing much more affordable. The track is very well kept and sports very clean facilities, a new catch fence, 43 sky boxes atop the grandstands, a Hospitality Village that can cater up to 500 people, Party and Hospitality Decks, and all paved pit areas both inside and outside the track. The safety crew is all firefighters along with paramedics. The safety truck is top notch and along the lines of what I've seen in NASCAR Sprint Cup and IndyCar racing.
Camping is allowed at the track in an area away from the grandstands and several patrons extolled Gary's policy of allowing tent campers to stay overnight without hassle. They can combine a camping experience with a night at the races, and that spells fun. All of the races were run on a tight schedule: Drivers meeting at 6:15, First Race to Frontstretch at 6:45, Invocation/National Anthem at 6:56, and so on. And I believe every segment was within minutes of that schedule. This track can be a bit slick, but Gary adds a sticky coating to the asphalt and that makes for two- and three-wide racing many times. I noticed that not many of the cars were running tie-down shocks and typical Big Bar and Soft Springs setups. Andy Bozell told me that he no longer runs the bumpstops and instead opts for a soft conventional setup that puts him up front at every event. All of the events run this night were exciting and the Outlaws put on a show. Passing is fairly difficult and it takes experience and patience to move ahead. This is a great learning track for young racers. If you can master the art of racing clean here, you can do it anywhere.
One interesting finding was...
One interesting finding was that all of the Outlaw Late Models must run the Hoosier 970 treaded tire. This keeps costs down as well as keeping the speeds under control. It makes the racing all about driving and handling. This tire is very consistent and is actually better the second race it’s run. It will last and be competitive for a full three race nights.
Here we see Andy Bozell, a...
Here we see Andy Bozell, a regular and many time winner and champion who runs a more conventional setups that bests the bumpstop setups most nights. We see the nose height coming off Turn 4 to be quite high, but aero at this bullring matters much less than mechanical grip and dynamic balance.
The safety crew at Kalamazoo...
The safety crew at Kalamazoo was very professional and efficient. The cast was made up of off-duty firefighters and paramedics. This is a comfort to the racers who may need immediate medical evaluation and attention by professionals used to trauma. Many tracks need to call 911 in a serious situation and help could be tens of minutes away. That’s not a comforting thought.
This is one of the most successful tracks we have visited to date and the grandstands, as well as the pits were full. When a promoter runs a clean show, complete with solid tech, a video review process for on-track situations, and affordable rules, including $100 tires, it all works.
Our next stops on the 2012 Tour include Grundy County Speedway and Wayne Lensing's newly acquired Dells Raceway Park, where the many innovations he has brought to short track racing will surprise and amaze you. Stay tuned.
The divisions run here include the Cyber Stocks, Mini Stocks, Pro Stocks, Super Stocks, and Outlaw Super Late Models. Interestingly, the Outlaw Supers must run the Hoosier 970 treaded tires with only two new tires allowed to be run each week maximum.
Many drivers complained about having to run these tires, but when I spoke with several, they all agreed that this particular tire was very repeatable in performance and one even said it was better the second week it was run. It’s a $100 tire and makes this class of racing much more affordable.
The track is very well kept and sports very clean facilities, a new catch fence, 43 sky boxes atop the grandstands, a Hospitality Village that can cater up to 500 people, Party and Hospitality Decks, and all paved pit areas both inside and outside the track. The safety crew is all firefighters along with paramedics. The safety truck is top notch and along the lines of what I’ve seen in NASCAR Sprint Cup and IndyCar racing.
Camping is allowed at the track in an area away from the grandstands and several patrons extolled Gary’s policy of allowing tent campers to stay overnight without hassle. They can combine a camping experience with a night at the races, and that spells fun. All of the races were run on a tight schedule: Drivers meeting at 6:15, First Race to Frontstretch at 6:45, Invocation/National Anthem at 6:56, and so on. And I believe every segment was within minutes of that schedule. This track can be a bit slick, but Gary adds a sticky coating to the asphalt and that makes for two- and three-wide racing many times. I noticed that not many of the cars were running tie-down shocks and typical Big Bar and Soft Springs setups. Andy Bozell told me that he no longer runs the bumpstops and instead opts for a soft conventional setup that puts him up front at every event. All of the events run this night were exciting and the Outlaws put on a show. Passing is fairly difficult and it takes experience and patience to move ahead. This is a great learning track for young racers. If you can master the art of racing clean here, you can do it anywhere. This is one of the most successful tracks we have visited to date and the grandstands, as well as the pits were full. When a promoter runs a clean show, complete with solid tech, a video review process for on-track situations, and affordable rules, including $100 tires, it all works. Our next stops on the 2012 Tour include Grundy County Speedway and Wayne Lensing’s newly acquired Dells Raceway Park, where the many innovations he has brought to short track racing will surprise and amaze you. Stay tuned.